Is Something Wrong With Me? Part 2

JD Greer please failure your ally or adulterer on trustworthy Jesus out loud yes and such were some of you but now you are what you are justified and sanctified in the name of the Lord Jesus by the spirit of our God, the way to get rid of internal voices of guilt is not to ignore them. If not, argue with them is to drown them out with the louder voices of the gospel that said like a never ending trial where you are the defendant and no one will tell you what your key is that it seems like we all have a deep-seated of guilt feeling we don't quite measure up in a nagging sense that we need to be better. So where you come from our subject today on Summit life as pastor JD Greer continues our study in Psalms chapter 32 titled question everything. As always, you can catch up on previous messages by visiting JD Greer.com but for now, your Bible is castigating last week from Psalm one was can I really be happy and if so how can I be happy this week will get a look at something that connects very closely to that question David is going to open up Psalm 32 with the same or that open up someone from last week and if you remember the word happy. Blessed is the man whose transgression is forgiven. Blessed is the Hebrew ashtray. It literally means happy, happy is the one sin is forgiven sinners transgressions are covered in this Psalm. He's going to come back. Happiness with forgiveness. He is going to say that there is in fact something wrong with you and that feeling of shame or uneasiness has a grain of truth in it, even if it's been distorted and I'll explain that in a moment I met in order to be happy you have to deal with that feeling. But you not be within the way that you typically think that you should be reading verse three when I kept silent, not try to ignore it. My bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. Verse four for day and night your hand was heavy upon me.

My strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah. Selah is a word the scholar say probably means stop and think about this, so let's do just that will sublimate about that for a few minutes anything about it out loud the psalmist in verse three begins to look upward and he connects this feeling of unhappiness. This sense of condemnation to God and he is correct in doing that. You see, when Adam and Eve first sin. The first emotion they felt was shame over their nakedness.

That feeling of soul nakedness is now ingrained in our souls and it goes back to our relationship with God. Not all shame is legitimate. Sometimes shame comes from suffering or abuse is nothing to do with you, but we have a sense of soul judgment that comes from our separation from God, and the realization that it connects to God as a gift from God. Not all guilt and not all shame is bad.

Guilt can be God's messenger showing you that something is not right and that's what the psalmist is experiencing.

Maybe.

Maybe you are finally out of place now you have for the first time in your life you're going to see what your selfish actions have caused in the lives of others.

So the psalmist goes on. The first time the light of God is coming into you. Is it day and night you feel like your hand is heavy on me and your shrink is right up psalmist goes on verse five.

So, I acknowledge my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity.

I said I will confess my transgressions to the Lord and then you forgave the iniquity of my sin.

Selah stop think that again is telling us to tell us how to be happy to give us five ways here want to find happiness. He said you had to be honest about your said you be honest about your say I didn't cover my sin has a clear reference back to the garden to be because that's what they had done the guard to be made. It the first thing that God did when he came to them what he called them out from hiding, he made them uncover themselves and after they come out from hiding and uncovered themselves. It was then that he dealt with their sin, and he did that by killing an animal and making them coverings from the animal skin giving them a picture of how he would deal with their sin in the future. In order for God to cover their sin. You see, they had a first uncovered. That's an important lesson about your side encourage you to write that down cover your sin and God will expose it. Exposure, Senegal covered cover your synagogue will expose exposing to cover it, which is closely related to number two.

Define happiness you must own your sin, you know your sin four times in verse five he uses the word my my sin, my iniquity, my transgressions number three to find happiness. You must learn to hate your sin and not just its consequences were used for confess in the Septuagint, which was the Greek translation of the Old Testament you during the time of Jesus. The word used for confess implies something beyond what our English word confess means confess in Greek means that you see things from the perspective of the one that you wrong. Not only are you admitting that you done wrong. You are changing your perspective to the perspective of the person that you wrong.

You see, in English, you can confess something and not really feel any differently about it. Just admit that you did that the classic expression of this is if I've offended you that I'm sorry.

You know as well as I do, that means I'm really sorry for what I did. I'm sorry that you're upset about it. That's not repentance that is a cheap, selfish attempt at peacemaking confess in this Psalm means more than that.

It means now. God I see things from your perspective in confessing. I have knowledge of what I've done is wrong. Many people confess their sin and turn from it because the consequences get painful. They get caught there embarrassed. They pay a penalty. Life becomes painful, your attitude, your heart attitude toward the sin itself has not changed.

You have not really confessed number four.

Define happiness. You must actually change direction did not happen as you could actually change direction Uganda versus 10, 11 to see the psalmist is changed he's talking about a new trust in God is talking about a new joy he hasn't got a new surrender in God where there has been no change. There's been no real confession to see you guys now listen where there is no change with the confession that confession wearies God. So you just enough distorted perverted church culture refill. I got you done something wrong but you go to church and to make it out to God despite being here right at that wearies God anyway. Every year this time we got students I know students who get drunk on Saturday night and show up on Sunday morning with a hangover while you're sitting here you like.

I hate Sundays. I feel so guilty and God in heaven is suitable and I hate Sundays to which you are you good to go to church on Saturday night and not get plastered in info good on Sunday noises. I hate Sundays because you honor me with their lives, but your hearts are far from me was of you are always welcome here, regardless of what last night was you always are, but I need you to understand what God wants is not your attendance. What he wants is your repentance. And so sitting here and sit in his auditorium is not currying favor with God what he wants is not a change of your rear end on Sunday morning what you want to change your heart toward him.

Now I want to clarify when I say the repentance and confession mean change. I did not mean that you cease to sin that you never sin again.

That certainly would not be my experience one my favorite verses in the Old Testament about this.

Proverbs 2416 a righteous man righteous man falls seven times and get back up again at seven in the Hebrew mine number seven was a member of completion. Some I do some seven times like that's all they did.

I have told you. Imagine walking behind a guy at the mall who fell 7 times the number one apologize, but number two you put your phone trying to get a load in a little snapshot of it number three are posted on YouTube so your friends can see it. If he falls 4567 times you're feeling bad about doing that could clearly the guys got a problem you call an ambulance.

The righteous man falls morally. Seven times, but every single time he gets back up looking in God's direction. You see, confession does not mean perfection but it does mean a new direction so I'm trying to show you that there are many of you that will yes you will confess and you will continue to struggle with sin is different than those unit confess the way of simply say God is good tell you this will make you happy that I'm telling you, but I have no intention at all.

Changing what I'm doing in the future.

That is the confession that wearies God number five.

Define happiness. You must hide in God define happiness, you must hide in God to verse seven. You are a hiding place for me.

You preserve me from trouble you surround me with shouts of deliverance. See something about that you're a hiding place for me.

That's again a clear reference back to the Garden of Eden when God slough the animal took the skin and cover their nakedness giving them a picture of what know what Jesus would one day do for them on Calvary when his body was torn open like that animals in his blood would now cover our sin.

We would hide in God I love that imagery by the way you surround me with shouts of deliverance. When Jesus died on the cross it says right before he died with a loud voice, he lifted up his butt. His head would allow boy said it is finished. It's paid.

That's a shot of deliverance. He surrounding us with when somebody is somebody you love was underwater in a car payment right in the banking repo that car and you went down to the bank as you love this person and you paid not only what they were behind in their payments. You paid off the whole car they are $20,000 on it. You just paid it all. Three weeks later you hear the bankers back to their house try to repossess the car. What you do you go down where the repossess in a car and with a loud voice you say bad thoughts that car because I paid for this. That is no longer outstanding. You cannot put our finger on that car. God did not simply forget about our sin. He did not brush it aside.

He defeated it he paid in full with a loud voice he said it is finished you can't touch it any longer, my sin all the bliss of this glorious thought my sin, not apartment all is nailed to a cross and I bear it no more praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul, see we have voices inside and outside of us, condemning us for our sin. Jesus does not deny that what you're saying is true. A lot of times what he's accusing voices are saying or hundred percent true. He just cries out with a louder voice over them. I paid their sin debt you got no more claim against them first.

John says that Jesus is our advocate before the throne of God advocate means lawyer. Typically, what a lawyer does before judges, he argues, your innocence, or he argues that what you did was not that bad.

There were extenuating circumstances. Our advocate, our lawyer before God is doing no such thing is not arguing our innocence because we are not innocent is arguing the worthiness of his sacrifice in our place, say, God, you cannot punish them for that sin, because you punish me it would be unjust for you to require two punishments for the same sin. So I stand in their place. The way to get rid of the internal voices of guilt is not to ignore them if not to minimize them is not to argue with them is to drown them out with the lower shouts of the gospel. So your enemy comes to you and says you messed up your no good. There's no hope for you now.

Jesus shouts a louder voice. No.

There is no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus. Your enemy says you have no future.

You have no future.

Jesus shouts whole.

But I know the plans I have for you plans to give you a future and I hope when to use you for good and not for evil. Your enemy says you're a thief or a failure or a liar. Your adulterer, your untrustworthy. Jesus shouts louder yes and such were some of you but now you are wise you are justified your sanctified in the name of the Lord Jesus by the spirit of our God, the way to get rid of internal voices of guilt is not to ignore them. If not, argue with them is to drown them out with the louder voices of the gospel you say will pastor will I get all this. I know this. I know that I'm forgiven by God, I still don't feel forgiven.

I can forgive myself. I know that when you say that you feel so spiritual and so sanctimonious is you get a higher standard in God, you know, it's just like I get that. But when you say that what you're showing is somebody else's voice in your heart is lower than God's voice. Maybe see your own voice of your own standard of perfection. You wanted to be. Maybe it's it's your father are some items important to you till you want good enough. You gotta let God's voice become louder than their voices. You gotta let his opinion become weightier than their opinion so that when he says you're my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. That's all you ever need to hear, let me close this or begin to close this by showing you two things that the psalmist does is he is he begins this is the song. The first is a warning that he gives us the second is a test warning them in a test. Here's a warning for sex, but the godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found because surely the rush of great waters. You will not be able to reach him. The psalmist is telling.

Seek God while he can be found because there's a time coming when the waters of judgment will overcome you and in that day you will not be able to call upon God for mercy. Waters of judgment will come that time is not now, though, because right now Christ is here in Christ has mercy for all who will receive it by the way, some 32 is where I get that illustration I use review comes from Jonathan Edwards who talks about the judgment of God be like a mighty river held up by a dam that suddenly splits down the middle your statement near that dam in a valley and you see this wall of water rushing at you several hundred feet high, going to sweep you away. You cannot run from it. You cannot escape your rider to your left your your death is certain, Edward said when right in front your feet. Suddenly the ground shakes and splits open and a great chasm opens up in all that water dumped into that chasm and not a drop touches you. He said this is what Jesus did the judgment of God was coming like a rushing water for us step in the way he took the cup of God's wrath. He drank it to the dregs turns over and with a loud voice, as it is finished, and right now you got a chance to have your sin paid for by Jesus. But if you ignore that if you reject that.

Then one day you are will come without will not be available and you will bear the judgment of God for your sin upon yourself.

What that means. Listen, is that heavy hand. The psalmist talks about that voice that speaks in you almost think they're not there to punish you or pay you back there there to bring you back there there to wake you up. God is not trying right now in your life beat you to death. He's trying to raise you to life. He says it is.

Seek mercy. Why may be found because it is in Christ, like maybe job is them you can only hide from God by hiding in God. The only hide from God hiding in God and right now Jesus opens up his side rock of ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in the hide from God by hiding in God and here's your let your tests as I have a thing of it like a litmus test psalmist explains after you found happiness and forgiveness.

Two things can happen to you when you start feeling love for God and you start feeling compassion for others, love for God.

Verse 11. You'll see the psalmist talks about his hope and joy in God. He is glad in the Lord Jesus said that those who are forgiven, much like this. Love much and so those you don't love God much is because they have little to no concept of what they been forgiven of the means for those of you who don't love God much. You never not really that exuberant worship you'll ever really wheat we think about the gospel you have passionate lover got the answer that is not workup love in your heart.

The answer is to have God open your eyes to how great a forgiveness he is giving you how close you were to hell when he saved you how awesome his mercy was extended it to you. Charles Spurgeon said it this way when we think too lightly of sin, we will think too lightly of the Savior, but the one who had stood before his God, convicted and condemned with the rope around his neck. This is the man who will weep for joy when he is pardoned. This is the man who will hate the evil that has been forgiven him, and this is the man who will live for the honor of the Redeemer by his blood.

He has been cleansed. It is knowing the love of God for you that produces love for God in you. Why verse 11 verse 10. The psalmist says steadfast love surrounds me is when steadfast love surrounds me that steadfast love for God grows in me to his heart for God sakes is yours the psalmist has become. Also compassionate toward other people. In verses 8 to 11.

The psalmist usually begins to address other people. Verse 1 to 70 saw the godforsaken levees are talking to others and what he's doing. He's counseling people who have gone to the same guilt and iniquity that he has used pleading with them because once you have the sense of how much you been forgiven of you become one of the most compassionate and merciful people.

People ever met. Those who experience deep mercy become genuinely forgiving people are you like that. Here's a few questions that yourself or you look at your marriage. Are you just a very person very quick to forgive, realizing that anytime your spouse sins against you, you feel that rope that used to be around your neck and you remember when Jesus took it off so it's hard for you to hold somebody else in judgment because you remember when you were forgiven. Are you a safe person for other people to be vulnerable with her weaknesses around if you had asked her to be forgiveness.

You will be why because you remember every time you see weakness and fault and somebody else you remember when the rope was around your neck. Remember Jesus taking it off and you won't be the one to rush to judgment. You be the one that says hey I got mercy. Let me show you how to find mercy to are you the kind that can admit your faults to other people and you have your can you admit your flows freely and by the way, when I say that I don't mean like you know the classic Christian like every guy's likely struggle with pride must distort assumption is like a badge of honor. I struggle with pride at the list you know I'm like really be invulnerable to gamma messed up human being could you be vulnerable with others. If you're hiding places God can be perceived here. The time you have to maintain the illusion that you're perfect in order for you to feel good to know you cannot be vulnerable because you won't have any way to feel good about yourself.)

How about this or do you take criticism well when other people criticize you. Do you take it well, if you had an experience of deep forgiveness.

You will why you will mind other people point out your sin because you're very aware of their sins not trying to hide behind a mask of your goodness. God's mercy is your hiding place.

You'll find dreams are boasting about your faults so that other people can find the same hiding place for their souls that you found for yours.

The psalmist asked you want to be happy is not found what you think it can be found to be felling honest about your sin to be found you under sin and found you hiding God meticulous and forgiveness leads to happiness. Listen, because forgiveness reconnects you to God. Forgiveness doesn't bring happiness by making you guilt free forgiveness only brings happiness because it brings you back to God.

It's not being guilt free to make you happy is me connected to God and make you happy is different. All forgiveness can say is you may go.

Reconciliation says you may come.

The gospel is about reconciliation.

Jesus did not say I died for your sin, you may go. He said I do have your sin please, and it is when you are reunited to God. That's when the fullness of joy begins to fill your heart.

Have you found that happiness forgiveness is just a means to an end. The end is not guilt free. The end is connected to God. There are basically two errors that I find people fall into with this. The first one and perhaps the majority problem is that a number of us have just never really seen how bad we are. This is why we never embraced with tears, the forgiveness that Christ offers us and all I can do all I can do is pray that the Holy Spirit will open your eyes to how far God had to reach to save you.

How great was his mercy is saving you how close to hell you were how condemned you actually were in your rebellion against God. I just can pray to God would open your eyes.

There are some of you know who do get that sense of judgment and where you struggle with this is you think you're too bad for God to save you.

You think I know that I'm condemned, but I don't think I could ever really love me and save me. All I can do is pray that God would open your eyes to how why, how high, how deep and how long is the love of God for you. How extravagant was his grace and sending Jesus to the cross for you.

How sufficient was his sacrifice and paying for your sin. How powerful was his resurrection ready to fill you with new life already.

The Holy Spirit stands. Fill your life and extend mercy to you if you will simply open your heart and receive him.

I pray that for both groups, God will give the spirit of wisdom and revelation, because apart from that there is no hope for you to understand the gospel in true happiness, cross your listening to some life in a study in Psalms called question everything to catch up on previous messages or to hear today's message again visit Jeannie Greer.com series we been discovering that the heart of our deepest questions in this alignment were believing either about ourselves or about God. Pastor Jenny is unpacking some of the most common and pressing questions that there are plenty more we could get into, not Janie. Why important questions in pursuit of biblical wisdom, I am. The questions are good I think. Hard questions are good and I think of you parents if you or your child is asking you a question you.

Sometimes it would be frustrating if you don't have a good quick answer to it. But that question is coming from a good place, usually in it's an opportunity for you to even say hey I don't know. I don't know but let's search the Bible together to see what what God's word says about this we put out a new book that is really an attempt to partner with people to help them in that process is called honest questions quick answers these are not long PhD level kind of things that you like I get like an eight minute answer that you would expect a knowledgeable friend to give you a coffee shop you are asking the tough questions about ministry about theology, about about politics and just what he would say this is just one of the ways of saying thank you so reach out to us. We always love hearing from you, but as always take the first step in going to JD Greer.com this is the last week to ask for the book titled honest questions quick answers donate to Senate life today you can give over the phone by calling 866335 665-5224. Give online Jeannie Greer.com are so grateful for your support or generosity centered, Bible teaching people across the country every day for the radio archive something so much for partnering with Molly benefits that can be certain in tomorrow for answering questions of the day.

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